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There are thousands of the children in the United States who do not have a family to love them. When most people think of these children, they picture toddlers or babies. All too often, older children get overlooked. But older children from ages five to seventeen need homes just as much as babies. These children need to know what it feels like to have stability and love in their lives.
Many of these children go through foster care, moving from place to place before they have time to makes friends or connections. Before long, they stop trying to make connections because it’s easier to move when you don’t have to leave someone behind. The good news is there are families who are starting to look for older children to adopt. There are several benefits to this, but one major one is skipping the baby stage–no sleepless nights, no changing dirty diapers.
One family recently adopted several older children. The brothers were in foster care for years. They stayed at their foster home for years, but it wasn’t safe or filled with love. Their foster parents used the state’s money to feed and clothe themselves, but starved the children. A neighbor found one of the boys digging through garbage to collect food. He took action. A couple adopted all the siblings and now ensures they have everything they need from Ecko clothing to school supplies. They even helped the oldest boy apply for college.
If you do decide to adopt an older child, you’ll need to prepare a bit differently than you would with an infant or a toddler. You don’t have to child-proof the house, but you will want to let the new family member pick out certain things like room decor and clothing. Older children usually know what they like, and it can be a good bonding experience to shop together.
